http://www.skyandtelescope.com.au 476 Venus 0.7° south of the Moon
8 Mercury 5° north of the Moon
11 Venus at greatest latitude south
11 Aldebaran 0.4° south of the Moon
17 Regulus 2° north of the Moon
17 Mars stationary
18 Mercury greatest elongation east
18 Jupiter2°northoftheMoon
21 Spica 5° south of the Moon
25 Mars 5° south of the Moon
25 Antares 10° south of the Moon
26 Saturn 3° south of the MoonThe Eta Aquariids are back
See up to 30 meteors per hour during one of the year’s best showers.
T
he Eta Aquariids is one of the
best meteor showers visible
from Australasia, and it is
coming up again in April and May.
This year the Moon will be new, so
conditions will be close to perfect
when the shower peaks on the
morning of May 6.
The Eta Aquariids come from
groups of meteoroids originating
from dust grains ejected from
Comet 1P Halley. These small
grains are distributed along the
comet’s orbit, mainly concentrated
close to the nucleus, with fewer
and smaller grains farther away
from the nucleus. When the
Earth passes through the stream
of dust particles, we experience a
meteor shower.
Peak meteor rates appear to vary
over a 12-year period. If the Jupiter-
influenced cycle is real as some
believe, the next few years will be
when the ZHR (zenithal hourly
rate) will be at its poorest.
The Eta Aquariids shower is
active from April 18 to May 27, with
maximum expected on May 6 and
lower numbers visible either side of
the peak time. In some recent years
peak rates have been high — 2008-
09 saw a ZHR of approximately
85, while in 2013 it was around- This year you should be able
to see 20-30 meteors per hour at
peak from a dark sky location; from
town, it’ll be more like 10 to 15 — so
finding a dark location is the key to
seeing the most activity.
The radiant will be in the
northeast in the constellation
Aquarius, and the best time to
observe will be from around
3:00am to 5.30am local time. Eta
Aquariids are usually fast and quite
bright, with many leaving long
persistent trains, some lasting for
minutes. They are usually yellow,
but orange and blue are also often
seen. The average magnitude is
2.7, and fireball and bolide active is
usually minimal. ✦The Eta Aquariid meteor shower is active from mid-April to
late May. This is the view looking east at 3:30am on April 25.NE WSANTONÍN^ R
ÜKLPhases
Last Quarter March 31, 15:17 UT
New Moon April 7, 11:24 UT
First Quarter April 14, 03:59 UT
Full Moon April 22, 05:24 UT
Last Quarter April 30, 03:29 UTDistances
Perigee April 7, 18h UT
357,163 km
Apogee April 21, 16h UT
406,351 km
Times are listed in Australian Eastern Standard TimeAPRIL EVENTS OF NOTE APRIL 201 6